SD-1 Minisport · Cockpit
Will you fit?
It is the first question almost everyone asks about a single-seat airplane this small. Here are the numbers the factory gives, and what you can change.
Start with the standard cockpit.
Suits pilots up to about 6.1 ft (1.85 m).
The shoulder measurement comes from the flight manual for the TG airplane with the SE-33 engine. Fit is individual: height, torso length and shoulder width all matter, and two pilots of the same height can have very different experiences of the same cockpit.
- Standard cockpit — pilot height guidance
- up to6.1ft
- (1.85 m)
- Factory guidance. Actual fit is individual.
- Cockpit width at the shoulders
- 21.3in
- (54 cm)
- From the TG + SE-33 flight manual.
- Maximum pilot weight
- 231lb
- (105 kg)
Source · Factory specification · SD-1 TG + SE-33 Flight Manual, Issue 1 · SD Planes USA approved conversion
Three ways to make it bigger.
The factory offers cockpit options in height, length and width. Each is described separately, with its own approximate added weight.
XL Headroom
Higher canopy top and turtle deck — up to 2 in (5 cm) more headroom.
Added weight
1.1 lb Approximate, factory-listed.
XL Legroom
Longer fuselage for taller pilots — 2 in (5 cm) more legroom, intended to help fit pilots up to about 6.6 ft (2 m).
Added weight
1.5 lb Approximate, factory-listed.
XL Cockpit Width
Wider cockpit for added comfort and shoulder room — about 2 in (5 cm) more at the arms and legs, with a widened instrument-panel area.
Added weight
0.9 lb Approximate, factory-listed.
What we cannot tell you yet.
We would rather say this plainly than let you plan a build around a guess.
Combining options
The factory has confirmed that the XL options can be combined. What we have not established is how a combination behaves — see below.
Added weight
The figures above are the factory's approximate weights for each option on its own. Now that we know the options can be combined, the obvious next question is whether those weights simply add together. That is not established, and we are not going to assume it.
Availability by configuration
Which cockpit options are available with which landing gear and kit choices is being confirmed with the factory.
What it is like in there.
The canopy opens to the side, over a 0.059 in (1.5 mm) polycarbonate windshield, and the cabin hood is composite. Getting in is a step over the side, not a climb.
Rudder pedals are fixed or adjustable depending on the landing gear configuration you choose, and the XL Cockpit Width option widens the instrument-panel area as well as the shoulder and leg room.
Behind the seat there is a small baggage space. The full figures — baggage volume, fuel capacity, maximum pilot weight — are on the specifications page.